Makin’ it: Wipeable art table

For many years, when I watched HGTV, I would tell myself that if only I had a staple gun, I would be reupholstering stuff left and right. And then my husband bought me a staple gun for Christmas two years ago. Twenty-five months later — yesterday — I used it for the first time.

We have had this little art table for the kids since Julian was about two. My sister bought it at Michael’s, painted it, and decoupaged it with pages from Goodnight Moon. It was cute, but the paper layer didn’t last. A couple years after, Ryan scraped the pages off, sanded it, and sprayed it with chalkboard paint.

Everything I’ve seen online with chalkboard paint seems so charming, but the reality is that the chalk dust makes a mess if it’s the surface of an indoor table. Chalk in a dining room = not so good. Also? Here’s how the chalkboard painted surface looked after a while.

Covering this table with oilcloth makes it easy to clean, perfect for art projects and snacking. It’s a kid-sized table, coming up just above my knee. I cut the cloth and stapled the edges down. That’s it.

I originally read this post and thought, wow. Cool idea. And promptly forgot about it. Then a friend came over the other day and brought her large oilcloth for the kids’ candy making craft she had planned. It was amazing to have, she just spread it on the table like a table cloth and when the mayhem was over, it was so easy to clean.

Stapling is too much for me, we don’t really have space for a special kid craft table but I went to Joann today and bought a large piece of oilcloth to use for the future. I think it will be very helpful for painting or play-doh. (Both of those activities make my inner neat freak shudder but what can you do?) Or markers! My 2 year old loves to “miss” the paper.

@Liz, glad to hear you say you had a good experience with the oil cloth, because I have been feeling guilty about this post. Over time, quite a few art materials have proven to NOT wipe easily from my little table. However, I think I chose a laminated cotton and it’s not as slick as regular oilcloth. Be warned.

The Rookie Moms™

Heather (L) & Whitney (R) are BFFs who wanted to have more fun with their babies. [read more]